Esperanza Lutheran is sharing their working documents on coronavirus health safety, including HVAC recommendations. Esperanza’s Council President is co-owner of a company that does environmental testing.
These documents—the Esperanza COVID19 Plan (Word doc) and Esperanza HVAC Report (pdf)—can be a starting point for public health discussion in your organization.
Read MoreWhat has the pandemic meant for the Begay family of Kayenta, Ariz.? Job loss, curfews, a break-in and dreams deferred.
Read More“I happen to like my family,” says Mort Zwick of Las Vegas. “But I’m not insane enough to risk death.”
In a short interview with Mort and Marla Zwick, The NY Times continues to ask how families are doing in the pandemic in a series called "Family Interrupted.”
Read MoreThis excellent article from the StarTribune follows six lives through the pandemic: a 51-year-old Eden Prairie man, a Wayzata funeral home director, a new mother in South Minneapolis, a young nurse in St. Paul, a Chinese restauranteur, and Minnesota’s health commissioner, who would set aside her grief from a deeply personal loss, and get to work. Read here.
Read MoreIn this podcast from the New York Times, health reporter Donald G. McNeil Jr. finds reasons for optimism in the historic speed of upcoming vaccines and other innovative interventions. Listen here.
Read More“We're thinking about Covid-19 the wrong way. It's not a 'wave' – it's a wildfire. Like a fire, the virus relentlessly seeks out its fuel, humans, and will keep spreading as long as it has access to that,” write Michael T Osterholm and Mark Olshaker in a concise letter in The Guardian.
Read MoreFrom The Atlantic, Long-Haulers Are Redefining COVID-19 explores the months-long problems that plague some sick with COVID-19. “Without understanding the lingering illness that some patients experience, we can’t understand the pandemic.”
Read MoreFor quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 182,230 cases, 3,933 deaths. Last week: 170,905 cases, 3,628 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 53,569 cases, 900 deaths. Last week: 47,034 cases, 805 deaths.
Utah: This week: 42,478 cases and 330 deaths. Last week: 36,178 cases and 271 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 9,195 cases and 467 deaths. Last week: 9,019 cases and 404 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 425 cases. Last week: 415 cases.
Tom Cunniff, ELCA General Counsel, gives some guidance on inquiries about church employees (particularly ministers) taking leave to care for children.
Read MoreMinnesota Public Radio provides an interview with Dr. Michael Osterholm. A message he’s been repeating lately is the importance of aerosol transmission and good circulation in buildings. Listen or read here.
We also encourage you to listen to his weekly podcasts. In the latest episode, "No Time to Rest," Dr. Osterholm highlights vaccine safety, face shields, and how to respond effectively to misinformation. His two-part series on reopening schools has resonance to reopening churches (parts one and two).
Read MoreFor quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 182,230 cases, 3,933 deaths. Last week: 170,905 cases, 3,628 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 53,569 cases, 900 deaths. Last week: 47,034 cases, 805 deaths.
Utah: This week: 42,478 cases and 330 deaths. Last week: 36,178 cases and 271 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 9,195 cases and 467 deaths. Last week: 9,019 cases and 404 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 425 cases. Last week: 415 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 170,905 cases, 3,628 deaths. Last week: 153,029 cases, 3,067 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 47,034 cases, 805 deaths. Last week: 40,088 cases, 709 deaths.
Utah: This week: 36,178 cases and 271 deaths. Last week: 39,714 cases and 303 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 9,019 cases and 504 deaths. Last week: 8,734 cases and 432 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 415 cases. Last week: 384 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 134,663 cases, 2,499 deaths. Last week: 112,783 cases, 2,047 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 31,924 cases, 626 deaths. Last week: 25,055 cases, 574 deaths.
Utah: This week: 31,878 cases and 234 deaths. Last week: 27,632 cases and 205 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 8,370 cases and 405 deaths. Last week: 8,042 cases and 386 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 332 cases. Last week: 370 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 134,663 cases, 2,499 deaths. Last week: 112,783 cases, 2,047 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 31,924 cases, 626 deaths. Last week: 25,055 cases, 574 deaths.
Utah: This week: 31,878 cases and 234 deaths. Last week: 27,632 cases and 205 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 8,370 cases and 405 deaths. Last week: 8,042 cases and 386 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 332 cases. Last week: 370 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week: 112,783 cases, 2,047 deaths. Last week: 87,495 cases, 1,765 deaths.
Nevada: This week: 25,055 cases, 574 deaths. Last week: 19,861 cases, 525 deaths.
Utah: This week: 27,632 cases and 205 deaths. Last week: 23,466 cases, 176 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week: 8,042 cases and 386 deaths. Last week: 7,613 cases, 369 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week: 332 cases. Last week: 301 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week, 87,495 cases, 1,765 deaths. Last week, 63,064 cases, 1,494 deaths.
Nevada: This week, 19,861 cases, 525 deaths. Last week, 14,893 cases, 495 deaths.
Utah: This week, 23,466 cases, 176 deaths. Last week, 19,544 cases and 164 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week, 7,613 cases, 369 deaths. Last week, 7,157 cases and 347 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week, 301 cases. Last week, 256 cases.
For quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.
Arizona: This week, 63,064 cases, 1,494 deaths. Last week, 43,494 cases and 1,284 deaths.
Nevada: This week, 14,893 cases, 495 deaths. Last week, 12,160 cases and 475 deaths.
Utah: This week, 19,544 cases and 164 deaths. Last week, 16,015 cases and 152 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week, 7,157 cases and 347 deaths. Last week, 6,747 cases and 322 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week, 256 cases. Last week, 204 cases.
Dr. Michael Olsterholm, epidemiologist and Lutheran, talks with Terry Gross how the coronavirus will be with us for months and “may come and go, but it will keep transmitting until we get at least 60 or 70% of the population infected and hopefully develop immunity.”
Olsterholm is far more concerned with transmission through the air rather than surfaces, stressing it’s how much time you spend in enclosed spaces.
And he dislikes the term social distancing. "It's physical distancing…don't socially distance. If there was ever a time when we all need each other, it's now," he says. "We need to start an epidemic of kindness right now to take on this pandemic of this virus."
Read MoreFor quick comparison, we are using New York Times 7-day average graphs for each state in our synod: Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. As of June 4, 2020:
Arizona: This week, 43,494 cases and 1,284 deaths. Last week, 31,283 cases and 1,130 deaths.
Nevada: This week, 12,160 cases and 475 deaths. Last week, 10,403 cases and 458 deaths.
Utah: This week, 16,015 cases and 152 deaths. Last week, 12,986 cases and 128 deaths.
Navajo Nation: This week, 6,747 cases and 322 deaths. Last week, 6,275 cases and 292 deaths.
Hopi Nation: This week, 204 cases. Last week, 145 cases.
